Nintendo presser: 3DS analog add-on, and possible 100 hour Zelda

At a pre-Tokyo Game Show press conference, Nintendo announced a $20 peripheral …

One day ahead of the Tokyo Game Show, Nintendo held a press conference where it revealed new details about the 3DS, including new features, new games, and a $20 peripheral that adds a second analog nub. Oh, and Kid Icarus has been pushed back to next year and Skyward Sword could takes dozens of hours to complete.

First rumored last week thanks to a scan from Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu, the 3DS add-on that adds a second circle pad, called the 3DS Expansion Slide Pad, will be coming to Japan on December 10. It will cost ¥1,500, approximately $20, and is powered by a single AAA battery. Here are the confirmed games that will support the peripheral:

Monster Hunter 3G

Resident Evil Revelations

Metal Gear Solid Snake Eater 3D

Ace Combat 3D Cross Rumble

Dynasty Warriors VS

Kingdom Hearts 3D

Other announcements include a pink version of the handheld that will be available in Japan in October, and a software update that will let 3DS owners capture 3D video footage. The update will be available for both North America and Japan in November.

In terms of games, a number of notable Nintendo franchises will be making their way to the 3DS, some we knew about, some we didn't. Both Mario Kart 7 and Super Mario 3D Land will be coming to both Japan and North America later this year, with Super Mario 3D Land set to hit North American store shelves on November 13 and MK7 on December 4. Other Nintendo titles primed for release in 2012 include Mario Tennis, Paper Mario, Animal Crossing, Luigi's Mansion, Kid Icarus (which was originally supposed to launch this November), and a new Fire Emblem.

Not to be forgotten, DSiWare will be getting a new, free game just in time for the 25th anniversary of The Legend of Zelda. Between September 28 and February 20, users can download an anniversary edition of the four player co-op game Four Swords Adventures, originally found in the GameBoy Advance version of A Link to the Past.

As for third-party support, Capcom will be bringing the next installment in its hugely popular Monster Hunter series to the handheld with Monster Hunter 4, which currently doesn't have a release date. Square Enix, meanwhile, announced a new handheld RPG without the words "dragon" or "fantasy" in the title. Bravely Default: Flying Fairy will be an all-new IP that utilizes augmented reality cards and is expected to come to Japan sometime next year.

Likely more that they include a extra battery to have a upsell beyond the extra nub, and allow for more game time away from the socket. Also, i think there was some talk about a third party extended battery so i guess Nindendo noticed a potential market (they have always been good at that, just observe the rebranded bandai training pack for the NES).

Likely more that they include a extra battery to have a upsell beyond the extra nub, and allow for more game time away from the socket. Also, i think there was some talk about a third party extended battery so i guess Nindendo noticed a potential market (they have always been good at that, just observe the rebranded bandai training pack for the NES).

I don't think it's meant to be a battery pack for the 3DS. A single AAA won't go very far at all.

THIS IS STUPID!!!! THE 3DS SUCKS AND IF I WERE TO GET IT, I SHOULD NOT HAVE TO PAY FOR SOMETHING THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN IN THE ORIGINAL DESIGN!!!!!owait, there will be a monster hunter, resident evil, and MGS that support this? crap. I need more money.

Even if there was a translation issue, "100 minutes" of cutscenes sounds like about 99.9 minutes too long for a game. The only cutscene should be at the end of a game once the main story is complete and before you go into sandbox/clean-up-the-side-quests mode. That 0.1 minute cutscene should consist of:"VICTOLY!!!!"

A one hundred hour Zelda would be really easy if they just gave Link some sort of Monster Hunter-esque grinding/crafting mechanic although obviously that sounds like the worst gameplay decision they could ever possibly make, but given that's the current trend with any sort of action game that Japan goes crazy for these days it wouldn't surprise me at all.

First rumored last week thanks to a scan from Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu

It was first rumored by a French site called "01net" (along with the 3DS redesign/relaunch for 2012). That site also leaked about WiiU which turned out to be accurate. Then last week Famitsu scan surfaced and Nintendo (of UK I think) confirmed it as official. Gave credit where credit is due.

They failed to learn from past mistakes. Their first attempt at 3D, the virtual boy, was absolutely horrible back in the mid 90s. I expected this attempt to be no different. 3D is a complete joke (with the one caveat being movies that are actually filmed in 3D).

Clearly Nintendo realised they *should* have had 2 analogue nubs originally and are trying to ret-con the system. Short sighted indeed. On the flip side, it may be an indicator of a 3DS-lite on the way (with better battery? hopefully?)

Francis Kuntz wrote:

Seriously, this is ridiculous.

That kind of design error, Nintendo is dead in 5 years or will be like Sega.

...Or we could just wait for the inevitable 3DSLite, 3DSi, and/or 3DSXLOMFGZ, all of which will have the second analogue stick built in, along with a dozen other features that should have been in the first installment to begin with.

While I'm a big fan of handheld gaming, I've been burned by Nintendo's constant re-designs a few too many times to ever buy one of their systems at launch again.

...Or we could just wait for the inevitable 3DSLite, 3DSi, and/or 3DSXLOMFGZ, all of which will have the second analogue stick built in, along with a dozen other features that should have been in the first installment to begin with.

While I'm a big fan of handheld gaming, I've been burned by Nintendo's constant re-designs a few too many times to ever buy one of their systems at launch again.

And much of the time they weren't even changes people wanted. Dropping GBA compatibility for a crappy camera? Seriously?

++ Last night I was playing around with Zelda: OoT, WW, and TP in an emulator, and OMG that's exactly right. I'd forgotten how incredibly tedious it was to start a Zelda game. They don't let you skip that crap. I'd sleep through it, but they require button presses. Seriously, I was looking to assign a frameskip hotkey.

I tried Mario Galaxy 2, and yeah... same damn thing. Forgot how obnoxious you could be, Nintendo.

And much of the time they weren't even changes people wanted. Dropping GBA compatibility for a crappy camera? Seriously?

I seriously doubt they dropped GBA compatibility because they wanted the camera. It was probably more like "hey, people are playing their old, actually good GBA games and not buying our new, half-assed DS games. DROP GBA COMPATIBILITY IMMEDIATELY, and stick a camera in the hole to cover our tracks!"

But yeah, I bought the original DS and never upgraded. I did upgrade my GBA to an SP back in the day, though. Damn thing should have had a backlight and rechargeable battery to begin with. >:[

Oh my how the mighty have fallen. The Wii is flat lining now that the novelty has long ago worn off, and Nintendo has all but abandoned it with any new games to go along with the 6 games that were ever worth playing on it, and now the 3DS has become this generations Virtual Boy.